Didgeridoo – also known as didjeridoo, didjeridu, digeridoo, didge, didj, didjerry, yiraki, yirdaki, yidaki, yedaki, eboro, ebroo, yiki-yiki, jiragi, ubar, uwar, uluru, ulpirra, ilpirra, kanbi, ganbi, ganbag, djalupi, djalupu is a lip-reed aerophone instrument originally used in ceremony by Aboriginal People in northern Australia and is likely the world’s oldest wind musical instrument believed to have originated from between 40,000 and 80,000 years ago.

The didgeridoo began as a termite-hollowed trunk of a tree that is harvested and finished to varying degrees, sometimes painted, and sometimes with a beeswax mouthpiece attached. Over the thousands of generations it developed into a complex and unique musical instrument. Didgeridoo was traditionally played across the top of Australia including
Mornington Island Queensland
,
Arnhem Land
and its islands in the
Northern Territories
and
Kimberley Ranges, Western Australia.

Although didgeridoo appears simple its construction is quite involved. Didgeridoo is
traditionally made
from trunks of living
Eucalyptus
trees, although very rarely, a suitable branch may be found. The trees are hollowed out by termites commonly known as "white ants." The selection of the right tree is probably the finest art of the instrument making as no didgeridoo quite like the one provided by nature. A craftsman will go to a good section of forest, often rocky ground, and walk through the forest following his instincts and using his well-trained eye to identify suitable trees to test. Some craftsmen like
Djalu Gurruwiwi
will first listen for the resonance of a hollow tree after hitting it with the blunt end of an axe. Most will peel away a section of the bark and flick the wood with their fingernails to listen for the hollow. If it sounds good down low and up high - hollow but not too hollow - then the craftsman will begin chopping. There will be a few more checks after the chopping begins, to make sure the bottom is as hollow as expected before felling the tree. If all is well after the initial tests, the hollow tree is felled and further worked to completion by stripping the bark, carving the wood from the outside and clearing out the inside as necessary. Nowadays modern tools, glues and even tape are also used. Sometimes the log is left in the sun or soaked in water for anywhere from a night to a month to cure the wood before working. On extremely rare occasions, the living hollow tree was filled with rainwater, and thus the wood is already cured. Using the traditional clay ochre colours of white, black, red and yellow the Aborigine paints the didgeridoo with various totem bird or animal designs.

Many didgeridoos in Australia and around the world have yellow beeswax added to form a mouthpiece, usually because the mouthpiece end of the instrument is too large or uncomfortable to play. Native bees wax is applied to the blowing end to cushion the player lips. However the Top End of Australia does not have bees that make yellow wax. Native bees there make a black or brown gummy substance called gunydju. Sometimes this is used to shape mouthpieces a bit, but is only extremely rarely used for large built-up mouthpieces as you will see done with yellow beeswax elsewhere.

With modern tools the didgeridoo is made very quickly. The inside is ground out by machines and the paints used are usually commercial oil paints. Apart from traditional yidaki made of Eucalyptus trees and sometimes
bamboo
the modern didgeridoo is made from
different materials including
PVC,
wood,
plastic,
quartz crystal and
clay
and usually cylindrical or conical, and can measure anywhere from 1 to 3 m (3 to 10 ft) long. Most are around 1.2 m (4 ft) long. The length is directly related to the 1/2 sound wavelength of the keynote. Generally, the longer the instrument, the lower the pitch or key of the instrument. Modern
didgeridooists
come up with new versions and derivatives of the traditional didgeridoo, such as:
didjeribone
invented by Australian didgeridooists
Charlie McMahon
, Graham Wiggins’skeyed didgeridoo
, round didgeridoos , traveller didges, slide didge and slideridoo.
The didgeridoo is played with continuously vibrating lips to produce the drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. This requires breathing in through the nose whilst simultaneously expelling air out of the mouth using the tongue and cheeks. By use of this technique, a skilled player can replenish the air in their lungs, and with practice can sustain a note for as long as desired. Traditionally the Aborigines not only blow the didgeridoo but sing into it as well. They imitate various
birds and animals calls
. In addition to the traditional drone and overtone techniques modern didgeridooists imitate almost any sound
and combine them, for example with beatboxing technique.

The Australian Aborigines play the didgeridoo in “Dance Group” comprised of three players: the songman – singer and composer, the clapsticks or bilma player and didgeridooist, who plays didgeridoo and provides the rhythm and effects. Only men play the didgeridoo and sing during ceremonial occasions, whilst both men and women may dance. The taboo against women playing the instrument is not absolute; female Aboriginal didgeridoo players did exist, although their playing generally took place in an informal context and was not specifically encouraged. In
contemporary music
didgeridoo is used by musicians in many musical genres
and situations.
Sometimes didgeridoo being an
overtone producing
instrument played as a solo instrument for recreational purposes and for
healing purposes
in music therapy. Practicing the didgeridoo helps to
reduce snoring and sleep apnea by strengthening muscles in the upper airway, thus reducing their tendency to collapse during sleep.